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Meet Our Coach
Jonathan Guarente
Jonathan Guarente discovered his passion for coaching with the Northeast Philadelphia Rockers and EYBL Philadelphia Belles Nike Travel Team on the AAU girls circuit. Under his guidance, the Belles won two Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships, a USJN Hershey title and USJN DC National Championship. He helped several players attain college scholarships, including Aleesha Powell (Iona and Seton Hall), Hannah Kimmel (Sacred Heart), Jessica Sylvester (University of the Sciences), and…
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All new (first time) athletes must have a parent or guardian complete a JDG Basketball registration form prior to participating in the event. Please print and turn in the form to register.
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Client
TESTIMONIALS
Jonathan’s passion for basketball and teaching student-athletes is simply amazing. He is dedicated and committed to his craft and he is able to teach the skills for all skill levels. He works with some of the best talent in the country as well as with beginners and is still able to exercise the same patience and persistence to make both skill sets successful.
From a coaching perspective, Jon is able to get the most out of his players. He is big on skill development, but with that comes an expectation of hard work and commitment. Those are two things that all quality coaches find valuable to build a culture of success.
As an instructor, Jonathan is absolutely outstanding. He is able to break down drills, and create an environment of hard work and success. He has an overwhelming amount of tools and resources at his disposal, and he uses those to reach his athletes and to make them better people and better basketball players.
As a person, Jonathan is someone that I would want in front of my son or daughter. He is all about building the relationship and trust that you need to see the fruits of your labor. He’s a class act and is a man of character.
Jonathan is someone whom I respect immensely and I look forward to watching his clientele grow. He is the best kept secret in our area in the player development and shooting coach world.
Mike Price
Athletic Director, Oxford Area School District
Jon’s approach to shooting is relationship based – he creates a level of trust with the player by asking him questions, finding the shooters comfort levels, soliciting feedback and approaching each session with an aura of positivity. The athlete simply feels like each shot is not being judged and in turn gets very comfortable working through the uncomfortable.
There is a real art and science balance to coaching shooting – you have to discipline the shooter on critical skills and have exceptional knowledge of form and technique, but you have to feel the shooters rhythm and realize that if you’re too intense you can unintentionally set the shooter back by taking away confidence and making the shooter too mechanical. Jon’s balance is exceptional – he has creativity, patience, and a calming tone that allows the shooter to get to a stage of trust and comfort while displaying his vast knowledge of shooting form and corrections.
Jon also is very good about being totally honest. While there are some issues with technique that can be fixed quickly, rushing to the destination is never the answer. He flat out tells the shooter that this will take time and that good sessions will add up over time. He celebrates little victories, helps the shooter understand growth and then moves the shooter along just as he gets comfortable with a new challenge.
Billy Lange
Head Coach, St. Joseph’s University
Jonathan is an integral part of our success at Westtown. He is our shooting coach and I recommend my players go to him for high level shooting instruction. I’ve seen players make really impressive improvements and adjustments to their technique in very short periods of time. His eye for shooting mechanics is unparalleled and I consider him the best at what he does in our area.
Seth Berger
State Champion – Head Coach, Westtown School
One of the first practices when I was at Westtown has stuck with me until this day. Coach Jonathan was walking me through a nothing-but-net drill. He made me realize that my shot was too flat as I couldn’t make any shots without touching the rim. From that point on we worked on my shooting technique with various drills that helped me create more arc on my shot. Jonathan was able to convert me from an only slash to the rim player to one that was able to stretch defenses with my shot. I appreciate all he did to help me become the player me today.
Edvinas Rupkus
Skidmore Guard, School’s All-Time Leading Scorer
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Training & Photo Gallery
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